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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24769153">drýcræft cneoris</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/WishWitch/pseuds/WishWitch'>WishWitch</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Merlin (TV), Stranger Things (TV 2016)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Bisexual Steve Harrington, Hurt Steve Harrington, I don't know what I'm doing, I'll add tags later, Steve Harrington Has Bad Parents, Steve Harrington Has Powers, Steve Harrington Needs a Hug, Steve Harrington-centric, no beta we die like idiots</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 11:28:54</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>8,073</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24769153</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/WishWitch/pseuds/WishWitch</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It had been over 1,000 years since Merlin's husband had been laid to rest, if Arthur was going to return he likely would have done it by now. </p><p>Merlin had never been one to lose hope, but after such a long time, anyone would begin to have some doubts, but luckily, Merlin had recently been made aware of something, of someone.</p><p>That someone was likely a sign that his true love was to return to him soon, and even if they weren't at least Merlin had someone to practice magic with again.</p><p>Little Steve had no idea what he had been born into, but by God, Merlin was going to protect him.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Merlin/Arthur Pendragon (Merlin)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>150</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Born annew</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Heyo peoples, if you came here from my original story idea post thingy, congrats! You have successfully peer pressured me into writing a huge chungus of a story!</p><p>If you aren't coming from that and you have no idea what I'm talking about, don't worry! I swear I'm totally safe and not being threatened with a gun right now. :)</p><p>Ok but in all seriousness I did actually really want to write this, so thank you to the people who encouraged me to do so! Also please don't ask me what the title means, I have no idea, and at this point I'm too scared to ask. This intro is pretty short and I'm sorry about that, but I feel like my brain is allergic to writing stories that are more than like two pages long unless it's a oneshot so you all have to suffer with me, sorry. Then again you could just not read this that is also an option. </p><p>Ok enjoy! Or don't!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Steven Richard Harrington was born Friday morning, December 23, 1966, at 2:05 AM.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His parents, a rather attractive young couple, had been married for quite a few years now and had been facing the pressures of society to have children ever since they had moved into their new home. They both knew what Steven was, he wasn’t a sign of their love, or a human being that they wanted to raise, he was more akin to Mr. Harrington’s car. Something to show the community they lived in how normal they were, and how much money they had to waste.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And so as they drove home from the hospital, Mr. Harrington was already making plans for a full time nanny, and Mrs. Harrington was starting on a rigid exercise and diet plan to regain her lost figure. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Little Steven sat in the back, unaware of what he had just been born into.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The first few months went by without much issue, the nanny took care of Steven for all hours of the day, and when both parents were finished with work, they would spend about an hour with the baby before going to bed. It was during one of these scheduled hours that things took a turn for the worse.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They were sitting in the living room when it started, the TV was on, some news station talking about “strange activity surrounding the local power plant”, and baby Steven was resting on his mother’s lap, with father reading the paper. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now Steven was not a rambunctious child, in fact the nanny often commented that he was one of the most well behaved newborns she had ever seen, naturally Mr. and Mrs. Harrington were pleased by this. But as he was sitting in his mother’s lap, her attention focused elsewhere, he was struck with the sudden and intense urge to play. There was nothing close to him that would suffice, but over on top of the large TV box he could see it, the remote. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now young baby Steven was not thinking such complex thoughts, obviously, but he knew he wanted to play, and he knew that he could see something interesting on top of the large glowing box that he couldn’t quite reach. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And so with barely any exertion, the remote began to lift off the TV, with little Steven’s eyes flashing a golden yellow.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>At first no one noticed, father was still reading his paper, and mother’s mind was wandering, that was until the recently airborn TV remote plopped down into Steven’s lap.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Richard,” Mary asked, “Did you just give Steven the remote?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Said man frowned, lowering his paper, “I most certainly did not, why do you ask?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mary paused, having been occupied attempting to wrestle the remote out of Steven’s hands, “it’s just that he seems to have somehow gotten hold of it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Richard’s frown deepened, “well perhaps you did give it to him and you just forgot, you’ve been rather distracted today.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mary flushed at the reprimanding tone, “you know </span>
  <em>
    <span>exactly </span>
  </em>
  <span>why i’ve been distracted,” and with a sharp tug the remote was yanked out of her baby’s hands, followed by a loud cry.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With a huff Mary stood from the couch, the crying Steven held in her arms, “everything is fine Richard, I’m going to put him to be-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She stopped.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven had quieted, and was now reaching with desperate hands towards the floating remote. Both Mary and Richard said nothing, both of them staring in astonishment.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly Mary’s eyes widened in realization, and she breathed out a single word.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh…” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>__________________________________________________________________________</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin was in the midst of teaching a class when he got the message, he had been ranting about how to properly make a sword, which was a bit weird given that he was supposed to be teaching an art course, when a small figure tapped him on the shoulder. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was one of the school’s messenger boys, and he was holding a small letter, covered in various stamps. Merlin took the note with a polite “thank you”, the boy nodded and headed off to deliver his next message.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He turned to the class with a small grin, “do you guys mind if we stop for a minute? This looks a bit important.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The class murmured their assent, most of them too busy reading to even pay him much mind, and so Merlin retreated to his office.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Based on the return address, it was most likely one of his more distant relatives, all the way from Indiana. He thought he recognized the name, Mary, Elizabeth’s daughter maybe?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not wasting any more time he ripped the letter open, his eyes scanning across the paper as fast as they could, but the more he read, the slower his eyes became, and the more solemn his expression turned. Mary sounded panicked in the letter, desperately calling for his assistance in dealing with her son, a young boy, only 3 months old, and his peculiar skill to gain hold of things he wasn’t meant to have. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin let out a heavy sigh.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well,” he muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose, “it seems as though a trip to America is in order.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>But despite the panicked emotions of the letter, he couldn’t help but feel excited, whoever this Steven was, he had a great destiny before him.</span>
</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. The Looming Future</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Life continues on, it's kind of stressful</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I'm so so so so so so so sorry that this took so long, I'm so bad at this and just things in general</p><p>Tiny little time skip, this isn't as long as I wanted it to be and I'm sorry</p><p>Ok I'll stop apologizing bye enjoy</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Steve woke with a gasp, his heart thudding in his chest.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>His dream had been extremely confusing as per usual, and with a heavy sigh he reached over to his bedside table to grab a notebook and a pen. Nancy had been the one to suggest he write it all down, back when they had still been together and Steve had woken her up more than once with his thrashing. He kept the habit up even after they separated, it had helped sort of, and in some ways it made him feel closer to her.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He rubbed at his eyes tiredly, he likely wasn’t going to be getting anymore sleep tonight, a glance at the clock revealed that it was somewhere around 4:30. He’d finally fallen asleep about 2 ish, so that gave him a good 2 to 3 hours of rest, which was admittedly better than his usual one to one and a half.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Shaking his head slightly, he got to writing, if he didn’t act quickly he’d forget the whole thing, which would defeat the entire purpose of grabbing his journal in the first place.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He’d remember them better if it wasn’t for his stupid parents, but the best he can do for now is write down fragments and hopefully emerge with a finished puzzle.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Rubbing gently at his chest he began to write. He started with the most obvious points, darkness, monster, evil, blah blah blah, stuff that he’d already seen, but the more he wrote the more difficult it became to recall. Had he seen a glint of silver? Or was it gold? Was the voice he heard familiar? And if so who was it? By the time he finished it was 6:32, and he had about a half an hour to get ready for school.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Stumbling out of bed, he put his journal back into place and contemplated a shower.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t until he was staring at the wheel of his car that he realized how shitty his day was going to be. He somehow felt more tired that usual, like he could pass out at any second, and his hair was less than voluminous, which was a tragedy. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He looked so bad that he wasn’t surprised in the slightest at Dustin’s reaction.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Woah Steve! What the shit happened to you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey! Watch your damn language.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin rolled his eyes, “Ok </span>
  <em>
    <span>mom, </span>
  </em>
  <span>what the frick happened to you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Nothing happened to me,” they began to drive to away, “I just didn’t get a lot of sleep last night, that’s all.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Really?” Dustin scoffed, “You look like you haven’t slept in like four days.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Reaching over, Steve shoved Dustin’s hat over his eyes before pulling up to Mike’s house, ignoring the indignant squawks from the passenger seat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Shut up and go get your friend.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin got out of the car with a huff, slamming the door behind him, he always got testy whenever he thought someone was keeping something from him, and even if lying was unavoidable, Steve still felt guilty. So, while he waited for the kids to return he decided to put on some music.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Both Dustin and Mike groaned once they entered the car. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Really, again?” Mike asked.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh come on! You guys love this song!” Steve gestured towards the radio.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah,” Dustin piped in, “but this is the fifth time you’ve played it this week, come on man.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve said nothing and only turned the sound up to a series of groans. It wasn’t until they were almost at Lucas’s house that Mike said something.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey Steve, are you feeling ok? Cause you look pretty dead on your feet and I really don’t feel like dying in a fiery wreck today.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin turned to Steve with a triumphant look, “Ha! See! I told you it was bad!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve rolled his eyes, before pulling up to Lucas’s house, “As I said earlier, I’m just tired, there’s nothing to worry about.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mike shrugged, content with that answer, but Dustin continued to eye Steve suspiciously until Lucas got into the car, and he was distracted by some weird lego thing Lucas had gotten for his birthday recently. Steve continued on his way, picking up both Will and Max before finally dropping off all the little midgets at school.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Bye Steve” they somehow chorused in unison, he had a strange feeling they’d been practising that in order to freak him out, the sneaky little bastards.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah yeah whatever, bye, don’t do drugs and all that shit.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin was quick to give a small salute, before running off laughing with his friends. He couldn’t remember if he had ever been that happy, he must have been at some point, right?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Not dwelling on it any more than he needed to, he headed to school himself, his mind still swimming with thoughts of his dream. If there was one thing he was sure of, it was that the dream was never different, it was the same thing over and over again, and the more he had it, the more he remembered.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He ended up thinking about it all day, dozing through all of his classes, not that that was particularly unusual for him. Though he imagined it had something to do with how tired he felt today. The day was over before he knew it, and it was time to take the little shits home.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It’s not clear what exactly possessed him to become the personal chauffeur for 5 middle schoolers, but despite the oddity of the situation, he tried his best. At first the kids were unsure about it, well except for Dustin, but by now they seemed perfectly accustomed to him and his car, immediately jumping in the minute he pulled up and chattering excitedly about their day. He listened as well as he could given the volume, and as usual Dustin was the last to be dropped off.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Ok and don’t forget we’re going to the arcade tomorrow.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How could I forget? You’ve been reminding me every five seconds.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin glared, “Yeah, but still.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I won’t forget Dustin, I promise.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The young boy smiled brightly, before firing off a hasty goodbye and running into the house, and Steve began to drive home.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>As he drove he began to think about the dream again, was he going to have it again tonight? And more importantly, who was that voice he kept hearing? He didn’t have any answers, and he doubted he was going to get any anytime soon.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He parked the car and stumbled into his house, any energy the kids may have rubbed off on him seeming to have disappeared, and collapsed into bed. He managed to nap for about an hour, before jolting awake yet again, he simply sighed and grabbed his journal.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The days continued to pass in an extremely typical fashion, with his dreams seemingly getting worse, graduation came and went, his parents didn’t come, neither did any of his other relatives. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>One day he woke up to a letter from his father informing him of his new job and when he was expected, the girl he ended up working with seemed to hate him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin left for summer camp, he learned the girls name was Robin, and the other kids exploited him for free movie privileges.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He thought about calling his uncle, but he had a feeling he wouldn’t be able to. A storm was brewing on the horizon, it was dark, and red, and undeniably evil. He kept thinking about how hard it was to breath nowadays.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Robin and him began to get along, and the darkness grew closer, he thought about telling El before realizing how weird that would seem.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then Dustin came back, and everything went to shit.</span>
</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Woah, suspense or something</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Is this how you child?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I honestly have no idea what's wrong with me, like, I desperately want to write longer chapters, but every time I try my brain is just like "I don't fudging think so" I'm very dissapointed in myself</p><p>I literally just wrote this so there is like -5 editing on this thing, however if any of u are interested in being my beta please hmu, I don't know how to do things</p><p>anyways yeah enjoy ig? Personally I hate it so no hard feelings if you think it's utter garbage</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>The first time Merlin held Steven was magical.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Both literally and figuratively given the golden glow that surrounded them both as soon as they made contact. Both the elder Harringtons stumbled back in surprise and fear, it was clear that they were unused to magic and its effects. The little boy beamed up at him, unable to describe the warmth he felt, Merlin smiled down similarly, he hadn’t felt like this in quite a long time.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The glow gently faded away, but the feeling of hope and love remained, the otherwise empty and cold house swelling with joy and warmth. They sat like that for a while, Merlin on the couch holding Steven, and the Harringtons simply staring at the two with barely disguised wonder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mary broke the silence first.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Do you believe me now Richard?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Instead of answering his wifes question, Richard turned to Merlin, a cold fire burning behind his eyes. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“How long will it take you to fix him?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin’s eyes widened, surely he didn’t mean-, but maybe he did? No, he only found out magic existed yesterday, he was probably confused. Choosing to think positively, Merlin replied.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well...he does seem pretty powerful, and that’s after a short glance at his potential, so it’d take a few years probably, that is if you don’t want me to-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mr. Harrington cut him off, “A few years huh? I think I can manage that…”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Neither Mary nor Merlin had managed to figure out what he meant by that before Richard was leaving the room, his sharp footfalls echoing throughout the house. They glanced at each other with uncertainty, and as though he had sensed the tension in the room Steven began to cry.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mary reached out to take him but Merlin waved her off.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“It’s all right, I imagine you haven’t been getting much sleep lately, with a newborn and all, allow me.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin gently rocked the child back and forth, his eyes shining, Steven was almost completely calmed down when Richard burst back into the room, and then he was wailing again. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Seemingly content to ignore the crying infant, Richard placed two bags on the ground in front of the baby ridden Merlin before beginning to speak.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“So I was thinking, and I believe eight years should be enough don’t you? He’ll be mature enough by then to keep his mouth shut, and it’s not so long that the townspeople will start asking questions.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Still attempting to calm Steven down, Merlin could barely understand Richard, but one thing did stand out to him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Wait what? I’m sorry I might’ve misheard you, eight years for what?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Richard scoffed, as if disappointed by Merlin’s confusion, “For you to fix him of course! Now how much money do you think you’ll need? A couple thousand every month probably, do you have a bank account?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin was growing more confused by the second, and Steven had yet to calm down, not knowing what to say he answered the question the best he could.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Um, I have my own money, thanks.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Richard nodded as if this were old information, “Of course, of course, I should’ve suspected that I suppose, alright Mary we should start packing, I was thinking New York?” he continued to talk as he exited the room.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Mary nodded, already on her feet, she seemed used to this kind of behavior. Right before she left however, she leaned down and gently kissed Steven’s head, causing the baby to finally settle down. She stared into Merlin’s eyes with unwavering certainty, he stared back, silently agreeing to her request. She rose to her feet with a perfect smile upon her face, and disappeared with a silent wave.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steven was silent now, his bright eyes taking in his surroundings, Merlin sat on the sofa unsure of what had just happened. He continued to sit there as the Harringtons loaded up their car, and he continued to sit there long after they had left. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The house was cold and empty, aside from two shining stars, neither of them aware of the path their destinies had paved for them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Merlin decided to turn up the thermostat.</span>
</p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Dialogue hurts my brain</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. With a flash and a bang</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Steve's day just keeps getting weirder and weirder</p><p>So, Russians. Who knew?</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Well would you look at that! Me? Uploading?? Could it be???</p><p>Heck yes it is!</p><p>Ok but actually I'm pretty positive this is the longest chapter yet, it certainly felt like the longest anyway, though I am very very tired so who's to say?</p><p>This is also not edited whatsoever, which is a both terrfying and kind of exciting feeling, blerg, idk</p><p>Enjoy!!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The day started out normal, well, as normal as his days could start nowadays.</p><p> </p><p>The brats had showed up again, and he’d let them into the back <em> again </em>, despite the voice in his head telling him that this was a bad idea and that they’d get caught eventually. But seeing the way they smiled, seeing the way these kids who had been through so much lit up every time he let them through…..well how could he say no?</p><p> </p><p>And then the power went out, which was weird, he’d joked about it with Robin but something about the sudden outage felt...off. The same kind of off that’d drawn him to the buyer’s house that fateful night two years ago.</p><p> </p><p>But Robin didn’t know anything about that, and if he’d said something about “weird feelings” she’d probably call him insane. Which wasn’t too different from how they interacted normally anyway but still. </p><p> </p><p>And then his day got both exponentially better, and so much weirder all at once. Dustin was back! Which was great, but he’d apparently recorded a Russian transmission? Which was pretty darn weird, but given how many weird things this kid’s been through Steve was inclined to believe him.</p><p> </p><p>Then Robin got involved, which wasn’t bad or anything, she was surprisingly resourceful, considering that while him and Dustin were stalking a zumba class she managed to crack the code. And suddenly he’s waiting on a roof in the rain, watching a door for any “suspicious Russian activity” as Dustin put it. And then they’re recruiting Lucas’s little sister, and then they’re standing in the weird room and the door closes and-</p><p> </p><p>They’re moving, faster and faster down to what feels like the depths of hell, and Steve’s never felt more nauseous in his life. They land with a thundering crash, it takes Steve a good five minutes to catch his breath, during which time Erica’s somehow gotten into an argument with Robin about drinking the mysterious green liquid they’d discovered earlier. And ok, Steve may be stupid, but even he realizes that that’s a bad idea.</p><p> </p><p>They escape, somehow, and at that point it’s nothing but walking, walking, and more walking, they talk a little but remain mostly silent and by the time they reach the end of the endless hallway none of them have any idea what time it might be. Dustin comes up with a brilliant plan and Steve manages to take out one of the guys, something that is exciting yes, but mostly just fills him with a large sense of uneasiness. It’s when Robin finds a door with a small window in it that everything seemingly comes together, why these random Russian agents are here, what they’ve been doing, and why they need so much power, they’re opening another gate. </p><p> </p><p>Neither him nor Dustin are able to explain the situation to Robin or Erica when the Russians suddenly notice their presence, and Steve may be scared out of his mind but he’s not going to let these kids get hurt, not under his watch. He’d prefer it if Robin escaped too but he can’t hold this door by himself. </p><p> </p><p>Being tortured is certainly interesting, it’s both absolutely what he expected and also ten times worse than anything he could imagine. But it’s not until they stick that needle in his neck that things really start to change. </p><p> </p><p>“Steve? Steve! Are you ok?” That’s Robin’s voice...isn’t it? It sounds like her sure but he’s never heard her sound so scared, so vulnerable before.</p><p> </p><p>“Robin….?” </p><p> </p><p>“Yes! Yes Steve it’s me! Are you ok? Do you know where we are?”</p><p> </p><p>Looking around slowly, Steve realizes with a start that he doesn’t know where he is, the room is gray and dull, and attempting to move his arms does nothing, so where? Suddenly, his memories come rushing back, the mall, the Russian transmissions, the code, the elevator, the gate, and the needle they stuck him with. </p><p> </p><p>He manages to mumble out something resembling a “yes” and from Robin’s sigh of relief it appeared to be enough. </p><p> </p><p>“Alright, ok good, are you feeling ok? Cause I don’t know if I’m just seeing things or what but it seemed like they gave you more of that stuff than they gave me.”</p><p> </p><p>They gave him more? Why would they do that? </p><p> </p><p>“-Steve! Are you ok!” oh it appears he blanked out again.</p><p> </p><p>Breathing deep in an attempt to gather his thoughts, Steve responds slowly.</p><p> </p><p>“I think I’m ok….I feel really weird, and it’s kind of hard to breathe, but I’m ok.” he doesn’t bother mentioning that it’s almost always hard for him to breathe, if it impacts him in some way, who cares if it’s always there or not? </p><p> </p><p>He can feel her nodding against the back of his head, “Ok yeah, that’s good, me too” </p><p> </p><p>They sit in silence for a few minutes, when Steve’s struck with the desire to ask a random question.</p><p> </p><p>“Hey Robin?” his voice slurs as he asks it.</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah Steve?” her voice sounds more stable than his, but she’s definitely been drugged to some capacity. </p><p> </p><p>“Do you think, when we die, our essence is gonna go to the earth, or the sky?” he can almost hear her brain pause in confusion.</p><p> </p><p>“Whaaaat?” she drawled, clearly bewildered</p><p> </p><p>“You know, our essence! Cause my uncle used to say that if the earth like, <em> needs </em>you or something, then your essence will go there, but if not then you’re free to like, travel the stars and shit.” he hopes he’s remembering that right, it was like eleven years ago after all.</p><p> </p><p>“Wow you’re reeeally drugged up man” Robin snorts.</p><p> </p><p>He attempts to turn and look at her only to remember at the last second that he’s tied to a chair, “Well so are you!” he shouts indignantly. </p><p> </p><p>It’s at that moment that the Russians come back.</p><p> </p><p>Both of them are too absorbed in the argument to really pay the emo kids in the corner too much mind, but when the one in the fancy suit clears his throat they both turn to look. <br/><br/></p><p>“Hey!” Robin shouts, “You’re that creepy guy from earlier!” at that both him and Robin burst into giggles. </p><p> </p><p>The man purses his lips, seemingly unsurprised by their behavior, and he remains stoic as he motions to the white coated guy, who steps forward with what seems like an attempt at a menacing grin, but it really just looks like he just stepped in dog poop. </p><p> </p><p>By the time they start to come down from their giggling high, the white coated guy has gathered quite a few things, some scalpels, some assorted knives, and what appears to be a bone saw, which Steve has to say is pretty gross. </p><p> </p><p>The man then proceeded to interrogate them, which wasn’t going well for anyone. Neither Steve nor Robin could focus on anything this guy was saying, which meant that when the white coat guy started going for his nails with pliers he really freaked out. </p><p> </p><p>It hit him then, that they were thousands of miles underground with no rescue in sight, and that it was highly likely that he was going to die here. The thought was absolutely terrifying, terrifying enough that Steve was desperate enough to try touching the barrier, even if her knew it wouldn’t work.</p><p> </p><p>With surprisingly little force he felt something in his chest <em> break, </em>but not in a bad way, in fact Steve couldn’t remember feeling a better sensation in his entire life. There was a bright flash of golden light, and Steve took his first deep breath in nearly a decade. </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Now Steve, I want you to listen to me carefully, cause this part can be dangerous.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em>“Ok!” Steve chirped, swinging his legs back and forth from where he sat on the backyard porch. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> His uncle smiled gently before beginning to speak. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Now, we’ve talked about accessing your magic before, but there’s a bit more to it than that, you know that controlling your emotional state is important right? Why is that?” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Steve hummed for a moment before exclaiming excitedly, “it’s because if your emotions get out of control while doing a spell, you could have a completely different outcome!” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “That’s right!” his uncle exclaimed, smiling at him brightly, “Good job at remembering that.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> Clearing his throat he continued his lecture. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Now, magic is primarily about your intent, but no matter how much you want it, oranges aren’t going to start falling out of the sky if you don’t have magic to pull from. Which means that each person who does have magic, has what’s known as a “magic pool”, essentially the place your magic comes from. Of course all magic originally comes from the Old Religion but that’s a lesson for another day.” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Ohhhh” Steve said, “So that’s why you told me to imagine a pool in my gut when I’m casting?” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “That’s right! Now I have another question for you, what do you think happens if you have an intent, but you don’t have a spell?” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> The bees were buzzing quietly, and the scent of pollination was in the air, his Uncle's house was buried deep in the countryside so that no one would spot the magic glimmering in the air. The backyard trees were practically sagging with fruit, and the flowers were in full bloom, it was practically a perfect day. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> After thinking about it for a moment Steve finally gave up. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “I don’t know Uncle, what would happen?” his curious eyes blinked up at the black haired man. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “It’s quite simple when you think about it really,” the man began, “you have an intent, you have magic, but nothing to control it like a spell, so your magic will attempt to make the intent happen in whatever way it can, this is what we call “instinctual magic”, the results can vary but it usually results in some sort of magical explosion or other.”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Have you ever had instinctual magic Uncle?” </em>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <em> “Oh yes, mostly when I was a child, but as I said, all you need is a messy emotional state to make it happen.”  </em>
</p><p> </p><p><em> The man suddenly sprang up and grabbed the young boy around the middle, swinging him to and fro. The boy laughed and screamed cheerily as they made their way into the house. </em> <em> <br/></em> <br/></p><p>
  <em>“Come along young Steve, I do believe our tea should be ready.”</em>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p>The resulting explosion was rather quiet, given the damage it caused, but magic tended to be like that, never giving you what you would expect. </p><p> </p><p>Both the man in the suit and the whit coated man were blown backwards with startling force into the surrounding walls, and the ropes holding Robin and Steve capture fell uselessly to the ground. Steve’s eyes were burning such a bright gold that they felt as though they were going to fall out, it was both agonizing and wonderful at the same time. </p><p> </p><p>No one noticed this of course, after all Robin was drugged to high heaven, and the only other people in the room had been knocked out. </p><p> </p><p>Somewhere in the building, an alarm began to sound. </p><p> </p><p>Steve was frozen in shock, he wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but it certainly wasn’t this, his uncle had assured his parents that the barrier was one of the most powerful spells he knew. Far more powerful than anything Steve had dealt with before, so how had he broken it? </p><p> </p><p>The door burst open, causing Robin on the floor to yell unexpectedly. His eyes were still glowing, something that both Dustin and Erica, who had apparently come to their rescue, noticed immediately. </p><p> </p><p>“Woah, Steve what the hell!” Dustin exclaimed, “What the fuck happened to your eyes?”</p><p> </p><p>Erica was quick to get back on track, “Who cares, we need to get out of here!” she ran towards Robin and immediately began attempting to pull the girl to her feet. </p><p> </p><p>With a shaky nod Dustin agreed and reached out to grab hold of Steve’s arm, the minute he did however, his entire body was covered in a golden glow. </p><p> </p><p>“Ah what the fuck!!” Dustin screamed, jerking his hand away, the glow stayed for a moment, before seemingly disappearing into the young boy’s skin. Erica grunted in surprise from where she was dragging Robin.</p><p> </p><p>“Ok I admit, that’s really weird, but we seriously don’t have time for this!”</p><p> </p><p>Seemingly snapping himself out of whatever trance he’d been in, Dustin responded with a short “Right” before reaching out to Steve once again and dragging him towards a small car. </p><p> </p><p>The drive down the hallway went by surprisingly fast, with Robin and Steve laughing in the back, and Erica and Dustin screaming in terror in the front. Steve’s eyes had yet to return to their normal color.</p><p> </p><p>It was as they were stumbling into the elevator that Erica tripped with a muttered curse, seemingly having roughed up her knees. He immediately went over to help.</p><p> </p><p>“Woah! Hey, no touchy touchy Mr. Goldeneyes!” Erica yelled from where she was sitting up against one of the many crates.</p><p> </p><p>Steve ignored her words easily, and instead placed both his hands solidly on the young girl's bruised knees, he squinted his eyes as though he was concentrating, and a bright light shone under his hands. When he pulled away Erica’s knees were as good as new, no bruises whatsoever.</p><p> </p><p>Both Dustin and Erica stared in blank shock at the skin which had been black and blue only a few seconds ago, they turned to look at Steve who simply smiled dopily. In the background Robin had found some sort of cart and was attempting to stand on it. </p><p> </p><p>At that moment the elevator jolted and the four children found themselves knocked to the ground, not dissimilar to what had happened last time, only this time they were going up. Both Steve and Robin were on the cart now, yelling something about how they were “surfing.” </p><p> </p><p>By the time they made it to the surface Dustin and Erica had exchanged enough weirded out looks and hushed whispers to give a valley girl a run for her money. Neither of them knew what was going on, or what was wrong with Steve.</p><p> </p><p>“Was he always like this?” Erica questioned, her steady gaze practically daring Dustin to lie to her.</p><p> </p><p>“No!” Dustin squawked, “I have no idea what’s going on with him!” he ran a stressed hand over the top of his hat.</p><p> </p><p>Erica hummed in thought, “Do you think the Russians did something?”</p><p> </p><p>Dustin glanced hesitantly at the drugged pair, who had since decided to share the cart, “Maybe? But they only had him for like an hour.”</p><p> </p><p>The two sat there, attempting to solve this seemingly random mystery for the rest of the ride, and when the elevator stopped they were quick to leave. Only to immediately turn around and book it into the mall at the sight of more Russians. </p><p> </p><p>Forced to put the Steve conundrum on hold for now, Erica was leff to watch over the drugged pair while Dustin scrambled for a way to call his friends. He was somewhat successful, but by the time he came back the intrepid pair had somehow vanished, much to the chagrin of Erica. </p><p> </p><p>It was as Dustin and Erica began their frantic search that Steve and Robin found themselves hurling into a mall bathroom toilet. </p><p> </p><p>“Soooo… “ Robin began “You think we barfed all that stuff out?” a heavy groan and a weak sounding “Maybe…” was the only answer she got, unsurprising given the amount of stuff he was given. </p><p> </p><p>Speaking of which….”Hey Steve?”</p><p> </p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p> </p><p>“What was that light show about?”</p><p> </p><p>There was a visible pause in the air, as though the very mall itself was waiting with baited breath for Steve’s answer.</p><p> </p><p>With a heavy grunt Steve slid himself under the stall, coming up to rest on the wall behind him, he didn’t say anything at first, simply staring off into the distance as if calculating his answer. Robin waited silently. </p><p> </p><p>Finally he pulled in a stuttered breath, his eyes locking on to hers. </p><p> </p><p>“Magic” the word was succinct and firm, he didn’t hesitate one bit, his eyes that had been glowing since their escape seeming to brighten under his determination.</p><p> </p><p>“It was magic.”</p><p> </p><p>They stared at each other for a while, Steve with just barely concealed nervousness, and Robin with a pensiveness that was as unexpected as it was logical. They both realized that whatever was happening now, it would define their relationship for the rest of their lives. </p><p> </p><p>“Ok” the reply was quiet, but no less determined.</p><p> </p><p>“Ok?”</p><p> </p><p>Robin gazed deep into her friends golden eyes, eyes which were slowly fading back into their normal brown.</p><p> </p><p>“Ok”</p><p> </p><p>At that moment Dustin and Erica burst into the bathroom, panting with exertion, opening his mouth Dustin said one simple word, his body practically dripping with exasperation. </p><p> </p><p>“Really?” </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Ok before anyone kicks up a fuss, yes, I'm aware that Robin didn't come out, and yes, I do plan on fixing that later on</p><p>I did want to try and include both conversations, but the timing just didn't feel quite right, and I wanted at least someone who Steve could lean on right off the bat</p><p>As for how Robin reacted, though it could be argued that her response was a bit OOC, again I just really wanted to give Steve someone who believes in him without question, and I would argue that that's absolutely how Robin would respond, especially given all she's been through in the past few hours</p><p>(Also can someone just lemme know real quick how that whole opening summarization thing went? cause idk how I feel about it)</p><p>I don't know when the next chapter will be, depends on how mentally stable I am I suppose, see y'all later!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Golden Reunions</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>The scoop troop has finally reunited with the rest of the party, but it seems as though El isn't feeling too great...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>This is barely edited, it is 2:35 in the morning, I regret nothing</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Stumbling through an abandoned mall like drunken idiots was a lot easier when you had two middle schoolers to support you, not fun, or easy, but easier. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They’d nearly made it, they’d blended into the crowd successfully and they were right at the door when Robin pointed out the guards. And suddenly they were running, sliding down the middle of an escalator of all things and hiding behind shopping kiosks in order to avoid getting shot at by russian spies. His life had always been weird, there was no doubt about that, but this was a special kind of weird that he’d unfortunately grown used to. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then a car flung itself into the Russians, which first of all, awesome, and second of all, that could only mean one thing, the cavalry had finally arrived. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Reuniting with people who actually knew what they were doing after a day of running around a secret Russian base was probably the most relaxing thing he’d ever felt. Knowing that Nancy and Jonathan were there, that El was there, that there were other people there to help protect the two kids he’d already mentally adopted, it was almost euphoric (or maybe that was the drugs talking).</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Then El collapsed, and he was rudely reminded of the fact that she was a child too, a hurt, injured, scared, overwhelmingly powerful child, with a weird squirmy thing in her leg. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Without a word Jonathan got up and ran, booking it towards the nearest kitchen, Mike was petting El’s hair trying his best to soothe her, while everyone else just sat around dumbly. She kept screaming, each one sounding more and more panicked and pained, it was awful to hear. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It wasn’t until he saw the glint of a knife in Jonathan’s hand that he realized what the guy was planning, and as much as it nauseated him he knew it was likely the only way.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>El sobbed once, loud and heavy, Jonathan steadied his breath, gave El a warning, and sliced as quickly as he could.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone jerked back in horror, it was disturbing enough seeing their friend get cut into, but the wound itself was almost pulsing, whatever was in there clearly trying to avoid capture. With no other choice, Jonathan slipped his fingers inside the wound, attempting to grab the creature with little luck.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With one final pain filled and frustrated scream, El sat up, pushing Jonathan away.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“I can do it” she rasped, her face covered in tears.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They moved away hesitantly, knowing she probably could but not knowing what the consequences might be. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>With shaky hands El began the process of removing the creature, her screams started up again, this time louder than ever before, the wound twitched slightly. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>And then suddenly it was out, ripped out of her body with one final primal scream and immediately flung halfway across the room. Not that he blamed her, if that thing had been in him he’d want it as far away as possible too.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was almost like a worm, a really gross, really goopy worm, but still, a worm. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Said worm barely made it two feet before it was crushed into mush by a large boot, with the owner of said boot just so happening to be the town’s sheriff, and he’d brought friends. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The adults rushed over and heartfelt reunions were put on hold as they focused on the hole in El’s leg. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hopper cut straight to the chase as usual, “What happened?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nancy immediately spoke up, “she kinda got bit by the monster, it must have put some itself in her.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“But it’s gone now?” Hopper asked, his eyes narrowed in on the wound.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yes,” El said, her voice strained, “gone.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hopper’s eyes unexpectedly softened and he reached out to put his hand on her shoulder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“That’s good to hear, now let’s get this patched up.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Suddenly Erica gasped, “Oh my god! Steve! Can you do to her what you did to me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone looked at them curiously, Lucas’s eyes narrowed in suspicion.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Now, normally Steve wouldn’t go around showing off his powers willy nilly, especially when he only just got them back. But unfortunately for Steve, the drug he’d been injected with still hadn’t completely worn off, and so with a bright smile, he agreed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh yeah of course! That’s a great idea Erica!” Steve said, already situating himself next to El’s leg. Everyone was still staring, their confusion obvious, what could Steve do that would help in this situation?</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was right before he started that Dustin spoke up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh yeah by the way Steve’s kinda been glowing for the past hour and we have no idea why.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nancy and Jonathan blinked, Mike and the others just stared blankly, while the adults immediately snapped their focus towards him.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What do you mean he’s been glowi-” but before Nancy could finish her sentence Steve’s eyes lit up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone (except for Dustin, Erica, and Robin) leapt back in surprise, his eyes were gold, pure gold, and his hands were glowing the same color.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Robin found herself staring, fascinated by the golden magic that was taking place in front of her. It wasn’t that she hadn’t believed him, of course she believed him, why wouldn’t she? It was just that being told that someone was magical and actually seeing it were two completely different things. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>His eyes were glowing yes, but so were his hands, which seemed to be wrapped in some sort of golden dust that floated and spiraled through the air. It was also diving into the cut on El’s leg, and before all of their eyes the wound slowly began to close. El herself appeared completely relaxed, whatever was happening clearly didn’t hurt, she seemed almost happy actually.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Finally the glow died down, Steve’s hands drifted away from where they’d hovered over the girls leg, and his eyes returned to their normal brown. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>El’s leg was completely healed. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was silence for a moment, as if everyone in the room was holding their breath, when finally, they all exploded.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What the hell was that?!?-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“You choose to mention this </span>
  <em>
    <span>now</span>
  </em>
  <span>-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“What the fuck what the fuck what the fuck-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“That was kinda pretty actually-”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“I’m so confused what the hell is going on-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Everybody QUIET” the room hushed at the sound of Hopper’s yell, all of them turning to him guiltily. He huffed slightly.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Now,” he turned to address Dustin, Erica, and Robin, “You three, tell me what happened, now.” This was emphasized with a sharp glare that had the kids rushing to explain.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It took a good half hour to get through everything, given that everyone else was adding their own perspectives at the same time, during which El and Steve found themselves sitting together on the sidelines. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She turned to Steve inquisitively, it was obvious she had questions, but she also appeared content to simply sit there for the time being. Eventually though she did speak up.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steve?” she asked, turning to the swoopy haired boy.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah?” he responded, turning his attention away from the conversation going on in front of them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>She hesitated slightly, as if unsure if her question would be taken well, but an encouraging look from Steve prompted her to ask regardless.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you...like me?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>There was a moment of silence before Steve sighed in defeat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“No, not quite.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh…” she looked down thoughtfully.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well then… What are you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve grimaced, “it’s kind of hard to explain, but the basic difference is that I was born with my abilities, you weren’t”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>El stared at him for a minute before carefully placing a hand on his arm, he looked at her curiously. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Smiling brighter than she had since this whole thing started, El said one simple phrase.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Like me, different, family.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>A smile slowly spread across Steve’s face too, the young girl’s sudden optimism proving infectious. She had a point, they were both different, they would always be different, there was no reason they shouldn’t stick together. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well,” he smiled, putting his hand on top of hers where it rested on his arm, “family it is.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The moment was broken up by Hopper, who had managed to kneel next to them without alerting either of the two. As broad shouldered as the man was he could be surprisingly stealthy. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Unexpectedly the man reached out and grabbed Steve’s face, his eyes practically piercing into the teenager’s soul. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hmmm, his pupils are still pretty dilated, you’re sure you vomited all of it out?” he turned to Robin as he said this. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well, I’m pretty sure I did, but I think they might have given him a bigger dose, I’m not sure why though.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Hopper hummed once more, finally letting go of Steve’s face. “Well we don’t have all day, so as long as whatever’s going on isn’t hurting anyone we’re gonna have to focus on closing the portal first, glowing Steve later.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone else agreed hesitantly, but people like Nancy in particular seemed unwilling to let the subject go.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What! We have no idea what’s wrong with him! Sure that gold stuff healed El, but he could be dying right now!” Jonathan put a consoling hand on her shoulder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>It was then that El spoke up, “No, not bad, safe.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Everyone glanced at her curiously, unsure of what she was trying to say. Mike was the first to get it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re saying that whatever Steve did, it didn’t feel bad? It felt safe?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>El nodded emphatically, “Yes. Good. Not like… bad place.” her face grew slightly pale, as did everyone else’s. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Well,” grunted Hopper, “like I said, we don’t exactly have the time so we’re gonna have to take her word for it.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Now” he turned to the only two other adults, “let’s figure out some sort of plan.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>They spent the next hour or so coming up with the plan. The adults were going to go into the Russian base while Dustin, Erica, Steve, and Robin went to Dustin’s homemade radio station and guided them through. Everyone else would stay in the mall for backup.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Something strange was happening with El’s powers though, they seemed to have stopped working entirely. It was after the fifth attempt that El went to Steve and asked if he knew what was wrong.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>He stared at her intensely for a moment, his eyes flashing momentarily, before he responded. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“You’re just tired,” he said, tone reassuring, “getting that worm out of your leg took a lot of energy, I’ll lend you some later ok?” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>You could faintly hear Dustin say, “what the fuck does that mean…” but the explanation was apparently enough for El who hurried back over to Hopper to tell him the good news. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Eventually everyone was ready, and the groups prepared to split up, El and Hopper hugged quietly, Ms. Buyers squeezed her kids and told them to stay safe, and unexpectedly Nancy and Jonathan walked up to Steve. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hey Steve?” Nancy asked, her hand holding tightly to Jonathan’s, Steve tried not to stare but it was hard to avoid, especially with how close the two were. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Are you sure you’re feeling ok? Whatever that stuff was isn’t hurting you?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Despite himself Steve smiled, even if Nancy and him had broken up he knew there was still some sort of bond there, they cared about each other, even if they didn’t show it as often anymore. Even Jonathan was looking at him worriedly, which, while not unusual from the kind hearted boy was still strange given their past relationship. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Yeah Nance, I’m positive, I promise I’m ok.” he said, trying his best to make it seem like this power was as unknown to him as it was to them. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Nancy and Jonathan shared a hesitant look, as if they could tell he knew more than he was letting on, but they ultimately decided to ignore it, much to Steve’s relief. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright, well I guess we’ll see you later then, hopefully after this whole thing is over.” and with that final farewell the handsome couple walked away, their locked hands swinging between them.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Steve stared after them wistfully, he didn’t dislike Jonathan, in fact he was more than happy that Nancy had someone as great as him as her boyfriend. But it was hard to forget the way he and Nancy used to act together, the times that they held hands and kissed each other gently, he missed it. But as per usual when thinking of his relationship with Nancy he also thought of the way it ended, and the harsh words she’d thrown at him. In hindsight he didn’t blame her, he agreed with most of her points actually. He hadn’t listened enough, she’d needed someone who could take her feelings into account instead of just ignoring them in an attempt to remain normal. She could have been nicer about it sure, but the breakup was bound to happen whether they’d gone to that party or not. She deserved better, and now she had it.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Steve!” he was jolted from his thoughts by a yell from Dustin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Come on man let’s go!” he hurried over to the group with a muttered grumble. </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright alright jeez, you don’t have to announce it to the entire world.” </span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin turned his dry eyes towards Steve’s face, “Oh yeah? Says the guy who gave my name to a bunch of Russian operatives.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Dude I was drugged-!”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Robin cut in, “shut up dingus’s! We gotta go.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Alright alright jeez, touchy.”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“What did you just call me?”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh you know what ice cream girl-”</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>From outside they heard one final shout.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Hurry up or I’m leaving without you!” it was Erica.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>Dustin ran outside, “you don’t even know how to drive!” he yelled, hopping into the back seat.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Oh and you do?” she responded, as Robin and Steve got in the front.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>The two teenagers shared an exasperated look as Steve began to pull away, “Don’t forget your seatbelts, you little shits!” he yelled into the back.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“We know!” they shouted before resuming their argument. Steve and Robin glanced at each other one more time, with Robin putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Let’s go fuck up some Russians.” she said with a coy grin.</span>
</p><p> </p><p>
  <span>“Sounds good to me.” he responded, and sped off into the night. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Please please please please please! comment if you have any suggestions, questions, or thoughts, comments are literally the life blood of my inspiration</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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